publishers and editors

Most writers wouldn’t be able to get their work seen or read without publishers and editors, who help their words become books, pamphlets and magazines.

Here are two people who work in this area explaining what they do and how they got into their first industry roles.

Kasim Ali Editor At Penguin Then Amazon

After a degree in English and deciding he didn’t want to be a teacher – which is what he had assumed he would do –Kasim considered working in publishing. As an avid reader his whole life, he was interested in how books are made and what the jobs involved in publishing a book are. Kasim found the organisation Creative Access (link on the back page), which offered him a 6-month internship placed in the publishing house Faber & Faber. Once he was working there, he was able to meet other people in publishing, and become aware of entry-level job vacancies. He applied for a job as an Editorial Assistant at Penguin Random House, which became his first post-University job.

“The internship through Creative Access was crucial. Once you’re in publishing, even as an intern, you learn how publishing works and which jobs or areas you’re most interested in. For me, that was Editorial, but for you, it may be Marketing, Publicity, Production, or Sales. There are lots of roles, all linked to books.”

James Trevelyan Publisher At The Emma Press

James worked for five years at Arts Council, providing funding management, advice and support across the London arts and national literature sector. His experience working in different areas within the industry means he has many transferable skills, including running a publishing press. James had a specific priority focus supporting writers and publishers. In recent freelance roles, James led and taught a module on The Writing Business on the Creative Writing MA at University of Westminster and supported production of Deptford Literature Festival 2022.